Choque: The Untold Story of Jiu-Jitsu in Brazil 1856-1949 (Volume 1)

by Roberto Pedreira

  Capoeiragem versus Jiu-Jitsu

  After Vasques’ poor representation of the national game against jiu-jitsu, another capoeira stepped up to challenge Omori.

  Argemiro Feitosa was his name. He was from Ceará. He didn’t care about the prize money, he said. He only wanted a chance to prove that the arma nacional [capoeiragem] was superior to the Japanese game [jiu-jitsu]. It would necessarily be a luta livre match. Capoeiragem was a striking art, so capoeiragem versus jiu-jitsu implied striking, hence was a type of “mixed fight”. Feitosa’s only condition was that it take place somewhere other than Circo Queirolo.29

  Omori accepted Feitosa’s challenge. Feitosa wanted a sem kimono match. Omori replied that the kimono is the custom of his country. He also said that he would not take responsibility for any injuries that Feitosa may suffer. A compromise was reached. It was agreed that the fighters could wear whatever they wanted. All techniques of capoeiragem and jiu-jitsu would be permitted, and it would be for the luta livre title. A percentage of the gate would go to a charitable organization [instituição de caridades]. The winner would “take all”.30

  Not even waiting to see the outcome, Luiz Gonzaga de Almeida, better known as Gradin, challenged Omori, certain that he would be able to defeat him and thereby restore the good name of capoeira nacional. Apparently he wasn’t confident about Feitosa’s chances.31

  Exponents of capoeira were animated by the prospect that either Feitoas or Gradin would be able to rehabilitate the arma nacional through a victory over the theretofore undefeated Omori. As Gradin and various others had expressed doubt about the possibility of a fair fight in the Queirolo brother’s circus, they demanded a neutral site. Omori agreed to fight both of them, Feitosa and Gradin, at a location other than Circo Queirolo.32

  “Capoeira” began to be increasingly used as a shorter variant of “capoeiragem”. Advocates of the national game had been trying to clean up its image and in the process they began calling it capoeira instead of capoeiragem. Capoeiras (the fighters) came to be called capoeiristas. Another factor was undoubtedly that “capoeira” fits more compactly into newspaper headings. Space is a scarce resource in periodicals. Longer words, in aggregate, compete with paid advertising. Advertising pays the bills and makes the cover price lower, which increases circulation, allowing fight promoters and advertisers to get the word out more broadly and more economically.33

  It took time to get the Omori versus Feitosa affair off the ground. In the mean time, Omori took advantage of his popularity to establish a fully equipped jiu-jitsu academia, which was called Academia Paulista de Jiu-Jitsu. His partner was K. Bandant. It was located at Frontão do Braz, sharing space with a Academia de Boxe. Classes were offered daily 19:30 and 23:00.34

  That it was not a long-term success may have stemmed from the fact that Omori would soon run out of opponents in São Paulo.

  .Chapter 8 Notes

  Chapter 9

  1929

  While waiting for the Feitosa fight to eventuate, Omori took on two opponents in one night at Circo Queirolo on January 2, 1929. One was Farina, a luta livre man, the other, Francisco, representing luta romana. Omori was predicted to have no problems defeating both of them.1 Apparently, Omori did not encounter anything that he could not handle.

  Redemption

  The meeting with capoeira Argemiro Feitosa was set to take place January 6, 1929. The fight would be a luta livre match of five 5-minute rounds. It would be held at campo of Athletica Associação São Bento, Ponte Grande. Ticket prices ranged from 3$ for gerais [general admission, floor level, standing], 5$ for archibancadas [bleacher seats], to 10$ for cadeiras especiaes [special box seats]. Four preliminary matches of jiu-jitsu and luta livre (four 5-minute rounds) were scheduled. They were Gibyn (Gibin) versus Dete, Ismael Haki versus Ervin Klausner; Goto (jiu-jitsu) versus Guarany (luta livre), and Okido (jiu-jitsu) versus Rodolpho (luta livre).2

  The ring was 15 meters in diameter. As per the contract, the fighters would wear what they chose. Omori chose to wear a kimono as was the custom of his country, while Feitosa would be shirtless and would wear shoes, the better to put an early end to Omori, he promised.3 Fans were eager to see the fight. But they had to wait. It was postponed a week due to make way for a football game.4

  Local observers, supporters of capoeiragem primarily, complained about the inferior quality of capoeira “representatives”. According to one newspaper reader, Omori’s last opponent, who the writer mocked by calling “Bagunça, o terrivel capoeira”, did not even know how to execute the hand-stand part of the rabo de arraia [sting ray tail kick] correctly and ended up on the ground where he had no skills. Another Omori opponent, this time identified as Oswaldo or “Baiaca”was supposedly a “formidavel capoeira” but turned out to be a simple stevedore, who learned some lessons of ‘savate’ as a child [não passa de um simples estivador, que tomou, quando criança, algumas licões de ‘savate’]. The writer charged that the nacional game would not be redeemed until a qualified practitioner entered the ring with Omori. He mentioned “22 Marajó” and “Hollandez” as possibilities.5

  While waiting for fight night Geo Omori went to Rio to look for new opponents. He had run out of opponents in São Paulo.6

  Jiu-Jitsu versus Capoeiragem

  The Omori versus Feitosa fight finally took place January 13, 1929. Fans of the national game were again disappointed. The headline in Diario Nacional read “A Luta Final Foi Um Fracasso” [“The Fight was a Flop”]. According to the paper, Omori dominated from the beginning, putting Feitosa on the defensive and keeping him there. Omori protested a duplo golpe [double punch] to the kidneys, but it was decided that it was a legal technique of Feitosa’s art.

  After that, Feitosa inexplicably refused to fight. Omori did whatever he wanted. Feitosa dropped to the ground with seconds remaining in the round. In the second round, Omori’s superiority was manifest. He threw Feitosa to the canvas various times and punished him while the crowd, with justification, expressed their indignation at Feitoas’ insufficiency of fighting intention. Omori won in the second round by armlock [golpe de braço].7

  The writer was perplexed by Feitosa’s poor showing. He could not comprehend how a “master of capoeiragem with many students who already given impressive public demonstrations” could be so inept in the ring, let alone against such a small Japanese person.8

  Feitosa attributed his lack-luster performance to “nervousness”. He also alleged that Omori was warned not to apply pressure on the throat, but he did it anyway. Feitosa retaliated with a “cabeça presa nos rins” [head press to the kidneys] of Omori and was cautioned by the judge. Feitosa wanted a “desforra” [rematch] without restrictions as to techniques [sem restrictção de golpes].

  The writer concluded that after his pitiful showing it would be difficult for Feitosa to rehabilitate himself in the eyes of the public. A rematch wouldn’t draw flies.

  The evening wasn’t a total wash-out however. According to Diario Nacional,9 the preliminary matches were good. Gibin bested Waldemar in the third round, Klausner beat Haki, in the third round of what was described as the best fight of the night.10 Takeda (a last minute substitute for Okido) was considered to be the winner [vencedor] after choking Rodolpho unconscious in the third round [Takeda fez o adversario ficar desmaiado no terceiro assalto, sendo a considerado vencedor]. The Guarany versus Goto match was even in round 1, with the fighters exchanging aggressively [rudes golpes]. Guarny was declared the victor when Goto declined to come out for round 2.

  A Manhã, Carioca da Manhã, O Imparcial, and A Noite also all reported on the fight on January 15, 1929, indicating that there was wide general interest in such mixed fights. They were not, at that time, viewed as pure entertainment without athletic merit. People really wanted to know which country’s system of defense was superior.

  Omori’s Academia Paulista de Jiu-Jitsu, now referred to as “Escola de Jiu-Jitsu Geo Omori” arranged a “Big Jiu-Jitsu Tournament” [Grande Torneio de Jiu-Jitsu] to attract
attention to the new academy.11 The match-ups in the tournament were Wada versus Kitajima; Kaveno versus Arizunuma; in matches of three 5-minute rounds. Takada encountered Louvas, and Omori’s partner in the academy, Bandant, confronted Gibim [whose name was also spelled Gibin and Gibyn] in matches of four 5-minute rounds.

  Neither for the first nor last time, Omori would face two opponents, Weber and Guarany, five 5-minute rounds each, alternating rounds, with 2 minutes between rounds. The program began at 8:30 p.m.12 Results are unknown.

  Boxer

  Ervin Klausner was a well-known boxer with a long career in Brazil. Originally an amateur boxer from Estonia, he became a professional in Rio in 1926, making his debut against Canadian champion Soldier Jones on Saturday July 10, 1926.13 In addition to an impressive boxing record as a heavyweight, he was undefeated in luta livre. He was regarded by some observers as “the most perfect luta livre fighter currently in São Paulo” [o mais perfeito luctador do luta livre, ora em São Paulo].14

  Omori was scheduled to fight Klausner in a four-round luta livre match, Friday January 25, 1929 at Circo Queirolo.

  On the bill also were four boxing bouts and two luta livre matches between Takeda and Ritter, and Ismael Haki and Goin.

  Klausner and Omori had already met at least three times. It was predicted that the fight would be close because Klausner was the most dangerous opponent Omori had yet faced.15 With outstanding grappling skills (or even basic grappling skills) and a heavyweight punch, Klausner might have been a dangerous opponent indeed. But the Omori versus Klausner match was a lucta livre versus jiu-jitsu contest, without striking.

  The result is not known. Based on subsequent reports, Omori did not lose.

  Unknown Jiu-Jitsu

  Omori encountered Rogerio Archimedes twice more in February 1929, in Taubaté, a smaller city in São Paulo state about 120 kilometers from the capital city. Held at the campo do E. C. Taubaté, both matches were jiu-jitsu. The first match time was on February 3. The second was on February 14. According to Diario Nacional, the citizens of Taubaté were unfamiliar with jiu-jitsu (it was desconhecido) but knew about luta romana (Rogerio was well-known [conhecido] as the champion of São Paulo). Omori won both fights.16

  Fighting multiple opponents in the same evening was not normal operating procedure. George Gracie did it several times. Naoiti Ono did it. Others on the top rung of the status hierarchy did it from time to time. Boxers did it. Jack Dempsey routinely did it. On August 25, he fought four opponents in Portland, Oregon.17 He only knocked out two of them (Bill Hartwell and Dave McRae), letting two escape the axe (Denny Lenhart and Bob Mariels). On September 8 in Reno, Nevada, he fought and knocked out three opponents (Eddie Burns, Sam Baker, and Red Tingley) in one outing.18

  The fighter had to be confident. Even so, things could sometimes go wrong, and did. Pushovers sometimes brought more to the ring or mat than they had been expected to. Generally, what happened was that they survived when they weren’t expected to or made the champion work harder than he planned. Occasionally the result was a genuine shock.

  That is what happened to Geo Omori when he took on both Waldemar and the Austrian Ritter (probably the 72 kilo German luta romana wrestler Francisco Ritter) in lucta livre matches in the same evening, February 21 1929. The match with Waldemar went unremarkably. But unexpectedly and to everyone’s surprise, Ritter defeated Omori. According to Correio Paulistano, “it was a sensational occurrence. To many, it seemed like a dream. To others, it seemed like a fixed fight. But the fact is that Omori was unconscious, and Ritter received the honor of being the first to defeat the previously unbeaten Japanese”.19

  Omori requested a rematch. In the meantime, the hillbilly Pedro (O “Caipira”) was being mentioned as a potential Omori opponent. It was said that he had already fought Omori twice to draws. Against Omori, that was a respectable record and seemed to qualify him for another shot. A rematch was set for Geo Omori versus Ritter, at Circo Queirolo on Saturday March 9, 1929.20 The result is unknown. If Ritter repeated his previous upset it would have been the stuff of myths and legends. As no mentioned was ever made of it, it is likely that Omori won the rematch and rehabilitated himself. Later, in Rio, he would claim to never have been beaten. Such prevarication was normal.

  Omori confronted Rogerio again (identified as Panthera Paulista) in a four-assalto [round] lucta de jiu-jitsu. The match was held at Salão Gabriel d’Annunzio at rua Major Diogo 43 on Saturday, March 23, 1929, in a program to honor the sportsman Jose Detti.

  Other (three-round) jiu-jitsu matches were Antonio Andriotti versus Raiol; Felippe Contino versus Jose de Oliveira; Maximino versus Henke; and the guest of honor Jose Detti versus Assumpção. Admission was free. The fights were preceded by an illusionist and some singers, and followed by a baile familiar [family dance]. 21

  Omori fought Estevam on Thursday April 18, 1929 at Circo Queirolo. Estavam was not identified by family name. Possibly he was familiar enough to local readers that he didn’t need to be, or possibly he was not important enough to merit more detailed identification. It was not unusual for fighters (and other people) to be mentioned by one name only, including a nickname, or by multiple names, with multiple spellings.

  Estavam might have been Estavam Jiskus (also spelled Jirkus), the giant Lithuanian who battled Jose Detti in 1936.

  O Caipira fought “the strong German athlete” Mith on the under-card. It was mentioned that O Caipira’s record against Omori at that time was one loss and three draws, indicating that he had fought Omori twice since February 21.22 However, there is no report of those fights.

  Enter Carlos Gracie

  Carlos Gracie had been in the news before, from June 1924, but not for jiu-jitsu.23 In March of 1929 he made his first appearance on the stage of professional fighting. He did it the smart way, on the coat-tails of an already established big name. In São Paulo in 1929, there was no bigger name than Géo Omori.

  Carlos Gracie informed a reporter for the Diario de Minas24 that he had been teaching the Minas civil police in Minas since March of 1928. He taught jiu-jitsu, which he learned from Conde Koma in Pará, he said, not as a sport but as a form of self-defense.

  Conde Koma provided an instructive example of his power and agility at the old movie theater Cinema Commercio, Carlos explained. A member of the audience was acting violently and crazily. No one dared to confront him.

  “Moeda”[sic] Koma, who had been watching the movie, got out of his box seat, and as quick as a flash [rapido como um pensamento] took the disorderly man by the arm and said “get out”. The man and his friends left without saying a word.

  Carlos did not hesitate to toot his own horn. He had never lost a fight, he told the writer, even when the opponent was a skilled capoeira [o sr. Carlos Gracie disse-nos ainda que tem vencido todas as lutas em que se empenhou, mesmo quando o seus adversaries eram adextrados capoeiras]. No one could survive even two minutes against him, he said [Nunca ninguem lhe resistia mais de dois minutos]. Carlos was well-schooled in jiu-jitsu and unbeatable, in his own opinion [practicamente, um bom conhecedor do jiu-jitsu e invencivel]. 25

  By the time the article appeared, Carlos was teaching the “esporte nipponico” to the civil police of São Paulo.26

  He was also planning a “demonstration” [demonstração] of “jiu-jitsu” at Clube Athletico Paulistano on April 28. The exhibition was scheduled to begin at 10:00 am. Carlos invited the press to attend. To motivate them to show up and cover the program, he needed bait, someone with star power, a known name. Géo Omori fit the bill perfectly. Carlos and his father, according to Omori, induced him to participate in the demonstration by flattering him and playing on his sympathies.27

  If Carlos wanted to attract attention to his demonstration and make his name known, without getting hurt in a real fight, or risk losing in a genuine match, this was the way to do it. Admission was free, and Carlos emphasized that Omori agreed to take part without remuneration or compensation. Far from having any interest in making money, Carlos
’ intentions were purely philanthropic. He was providing the exhibition for the benefit of the authorities, the press, sports enthusiasts, and to the people of São Paulo in general.

  How legitimate this match was is an open question. Omori later said explicitly and in no uncertain terms that at the time of the exhibition Carlos knew nothing about jiu-jitsu. It was at the request of Gastão Gracie, Carlos father, that he (Omori) agreed not expose the “boy’s limitations”.28

  However, Carlos seemed to want to create the impression that it was a legitimate fight rather than an exhibition or demonstration. He described it as a “lucta,” and called what he would be doing with Omori “measuring forces” [medir forças] a synonym for “fight” (in the athletic contest sense), and said that it was not possible to predict who would “win”.29

  Carlos also made a point of describing Omori as having the most perfect knowledge and proficiency of the sport of jiu-jitsu [perfeito conhecedor da technical e segredos de ‘jiu-jitsu’ para uma lucta] thereby making himself look better no matter how the demonstration turned out.30

  Nothing that Carlos said or did was unusual from a marketing point of view. It doesn’t tell us much about his jiu-jitsu background, knowledge or skills, but does suggest that he already had a good sense for what was needed to make jiu-jitsu into a paying proposition.

  Omori did not let any grass grow under his feet. The following Thursday he was in the ring again, at Circo Pinheiro on rua Theodoro Sampaio at the corner of rua Christiano Vianna. His opponent was Eduardo, (the champion of the bairro Jardim America. Two preliminary matches were Eukin versus Del-o, and Gotto versus Dudú.31

  This was Omori’s last fight in 1929 for which documentation is available. But Omori was not going to fade away. When 1930 came around Omori was there. By his side, or tagging along, depending on one’s perspective, was Carlos Gracie.